Renowned sports artist lives quiet life in Ocala

Man owns copyright on painted boxing gloves, baseball bases

Wayne Prokopiak and his wife, Eileen, pose with some of the sports portraits he has painted, including an unusual autographed guitar with Keith Richards, at their home in the Saddle Oak Club in Ocala, Fla. on Wednesday, Feb. 20, 2013. Prokopiak is a noted "sports" artist and is disabled with ankylosing spondylitis, a type of arthritis that affects the spine.

Bruce Ackerman / Star-Banner

By John PattonCorrespondent

Published: Monday, March 4, 2013 at 12:01 p.m.

Last Modified: Monday, March 4, 2013 at 12:01 p.m.

It was just about five years ago when Chuck St. Peter came upon a new neighbor attempting to trim the shrubbery in his front yard.

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For more information about the art created by Wayne Prokopiak, type his name in any search engine. To contact him directly, send an email to eprokopiak@cfl.rr.com.

Wayne Prokopiak was giving a nice effort, but he was having a difficult time manicuring the hedges by using primarily his right hand while balancing himself with a cane in his left.

St. Peter offered assistance, and a friendship was born. It wasn’t until a few months later that he learned his new buddy had a secret.

“I walked in one day and saw all of these amazing paintings,” St. Peter said. “I asked where it came from, and Wayne told me he did them.

“I said ‘really?’ and he said ‘yes.’ I was just amazed, and I couldn’t believe he had kept that from me.”

Quiet and unassuming, Prokopiak isn’t the type to brag about himself. The truth is, however, the 61-year-old Ocala resident is one of the nation’s premier sports artists and has been for decades.

From his hands have come portraits of everyone from Muhammad Ali to Don Mattingly, from Joe DiMaggio to Joe Namath, from Hector “Macho” Camacho to Keith Richards (on a guitar). And many more in between.

The legend grows larger when considering Prokopiak is afflicted with spondyloarthritis, a degenerative condition that has weakened his left side to the point where sometime in the future he likely will need knee-, hip- and shoulder-replacement surgeries. The illness makes it difficult for him to stand and walk, much less keep his bushes neatly pruned.

Paintings like the first he ever sold — of then-New York Mets ace Dwight Gooden (for $700) — 25 years ago more often than not took between two and three weeks, with him working anywhere from 12 to 18 hours each day, to complete. Now, the timeframe generally is closer to two or three months, but the quality remains the same.

“He is a perfectionist,” said Eileen Prokopiak of her husband. “He’s been like that his entire life. Sometimes, someone will call to ask when a painting they’ve bought might be ready, and he’ll give them an answer. What they don’t understand is that he’s going to be even more picky about how his work comes out than they are. He won’t hand over anything to anyone if he doesn’t think it is his best.”

Wayne Prokopiak also has become a favorite of his subjects, the majority of whom have autographed his lithographs.

He tells the story of big, bad NFL Hall of Fame linebacker Jack Lambert, who got emotional when he saw Prokopiak’s portrait of the 1970’s Pittsburgh Steelers’ dynasty. He said Ali was “quite the gentleman”; former three-division boxing champ James Toney was “really friendly”; and that athletes with reputations of being a bit surly (like former boxing champ Larry Holmes, baseball legend Mickey Mantle and stolen base king Rickey Henderson) were “incredibly kind and polite” to him.

Some of Prokopiak’s paintings hang in Mickey Mantle’s Restaurant in Manhattan, and countless works of his art have been sold at trade shows.

“It’s been a real pleasure to be able to meet so many different people,” said Prokopiak, who has never taken a formal art class. “I’ve been really fortunate.”

Prokopiak, who owns the copyrights on painting on boxing gloves and baseball bases, first noticed he had a love of drawing while in elementary school. He told a teacher he wanted to paint for a living. She told him she had a friend who was an artist who barely made enough money to pay for food and a one-bedroom apartment.

Still, he was undeterred, telling her he was going to make it.

“I would sit in all of my classes and draw all of the time,” said Prokopiak, a Rahway, New Jersey, native. “Sometimes, it would affect my other classwork because I wasn’t really paying much attention. I was focused on my art.”

And, unlike most first loves, this one has stuck with Prokopiak through his entire life.

“It’s what he enjoys doing most in this world,” Eileen Prokopiak said. “A lot of the time, I just sit and watch him. He’s amazing. This is what he truly was born to do.”

<p>It was just about five years ago when Chuck St. Peter came upon a new neighbor attempting to trim the shrubbery in his front yard.</p><p>Wayne Prokopiak was giving a nice effort, but he was having a difficult time manicuring the hedges by using primarily his right hand while balancing himself with a cane in his left.</p><p>St. Peter offered assistance, and a friendship was born. It wasn't until a few months later that he learned his new buddy had a secret.</p><p>“I walked in one day and saw all of these amazing paintings,” St. Peter said. “I asked where it came from, and Wayne told me he did them.</p><p>“I said 'really?' and he said 'yes.' I was just amazed, and I couldn't believe he had kept that from me.”</p><p>Quiet and unassuming, Prokopiak isn't the type to brag about himself. The truth is, however, the 61-year-old Ocala resident is one of the nation's premier sports artists and has been for decades.</p><p>From his hands have come portraits of everyone from Muhammad Ali to Don Mattingly, from Joe DiMaggio to Joe Namath, from Hector “Macho” Camacho to Keith Richards (on a guitar). And many more in between.</p><p>The legend grows larger when considering Prokopiak is afflicted with spondyloarthritis, a degenerative condition that has weakened his left side to the point where sometime in the future he likely will need knee-, hip- and shoulder-replacement surgeries. The illness makes it difficult for him to stand and walk, much less keep his bushes neatly pruned.</p><p>Paintings like the first he ever sold — of then-New York Mets ace Dwight Gooden (for $700) — 25 years ago more often than not took between two and three weeks, with him working anywhere from 12 to 18 hours each day, to complete. Now, the timeframe generally is closer to two or three months, but the quality remains the same.</p><p>“He is a perfectionist,” said Eileen Prokopiak of her husband. “He's been like that his entire life. Sometimes, someone will call to ask when a painting they've bought might be ready, and he'll give them an answer. What they don't understand is that he's going to be even more picky about how his work comes out than they are. He won't hand over anything to anyone if he doesn't think it is his best.”</p><p>Wayne Prokopiak also has become a favorite of his subjects, the majority of whom have autographed his lithographs.</p><p>He tells the story of big, bad NFL Hall of Fame linebacker Jack Lambert, who got emotional when he saw Prokopiak's portrait of the 1970's Pittsburgh Steelers' dynasty. He said Ali was “quite the gentleman”; former three-division boxing champ James Toney was “really friendly”; and that athletes with reputations of being a bit surly (like former boxing champ Larry Holmes, baseball legend Mickey Mantle and stolen base king Rickey Henderson) were “incredibly kind and polite” to him.</p><p>Some of Prokopiak's paintings hang in Mickey Mantle's Restaurant in Manhattan, and countless works of his art have been sold at trade shows.</p><p>“It's been a real pleasure to be able to meet so many different people,” said Prokopiak, who has never taken a formal art class. “I've been really fortunate.”</p><p>Prokopiak, who owns the copyrights on painting on boxing gloves and baseball bases, first noticed he had a love of drawing while in elementary school. He told a teacher he wanted to paint for a living. She told him she had a friend who was an artist who barely made enough money to pay for food and a one-bedroom apartment.</p><p>Still, he was undeterred, telling her he was going to make it.</p><p>“I would sit in all of my classes and draw all of the time,” said Prokopiak, a Rahway, New Jersey, native. “Sometimes, it would affect my other classwork because I wasn't really paying much attention. I was focused on my art.”</p><p>And, unlike most first loves, this one has stuck with Prokopiak through his entire life.</p><p>“It's what he enjoys doing most in this world,” Eileen Prokopiak said. “A lot of the time, I just sit and watch him. He's amazing. This is what he truly was born to do.”</p>